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Shares are one of the four main investment types, along with cash, bonds and property. They carry risk, but they can offer the highest returns. Here you can find out what they are, how to invest in shares and what risks are involved.

What are shares?

Shares (also known as equities) are like tiny fractions of a company. If you own one, you own a little bit of the company and a proportion of the company’s value.

You can own shares yourself, or you can pool your money with other people in a collective investment often known as a fund.

Funds buy a selection of shares, which are chosen and managed by a fund manager. If you put your money into funds, you don’t have to do the work of choosing the individual investments.

When you own shares directly you become a shareholder, which usually means you have the right to vote on some company decisions. This doesn’t happen if you invest in a fund.

ISAs can be used to hold stocks and shares or cash, or any combination of these, up to the current annual limit (£20,000). An ISA is a financial product that can be used to help save you tax.

When might a Stocks and shares ISA be for you?

A Stocks and shares ISA could be for you if:

you are happy to put your money into investments but want to protect any profits or interest from tax or to protect dividends from higher-rate and additional-rate tax (as dividends are taxed at 10% – however this provides no benefit to basic rate taxpayers)

you aren’t looking for immediate access to your money and are prepared to keep your money invested ideally for a few years, although this will be a personal decision.

you haven’t used up your total ISA allowance for the current tax year

you’re comfortable with the fact that the value of your investments can go both up and down and that you might get back less than you invested.

How self-invested personal pensions work

Self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs) are a type of personal pension. They are an agreement between you and the pension provider. However, with SIPPs you have more flexibility with the investments you can choose than for personal pensions.

With a SIPP you can invest in a wider range of investments, including:

Quoted UK and overseas stocks and shares

Unlisted shares

Collective investments (such as OEICs and unit trusts)

Investment trusts

Property and land (but not most residential property) insurance bonds.

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BankTree Online Personal Finance software will also synchronise with the BankTree mobile app, just select Enable BankTree Online from the settings. Each time you add a transaction it is also synchronised with the web application. Just swipe the dashboard to updated the mobile app with the latest data from your account.

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Details of how to setup the banking subscription service can be found in this support article

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